Children's assessments of need
Ivana Bacik raised the long delays for children's assessments of need and the large waiting lists, saying Ireland was failing its legal obligations. The Taoiseach accepted the waiting lists were too high and said legislative, operational and workforce reforms were needed.
Today, parents from Ireland, including our Labour Councillor Ali Field, are travelling to Brussels to present a petition to the European Parliament and institutions asking them to investigate Ireland's failure to meet its legal obligations to children with additional needs. Under the Disability Act 2005, every child in Ireland is entitled to an assessment of need within six months. However, more than 21,700 children are now on waiting lists, overdue for assessments of need. The average wait time is two years and many parents, having battled for the assessments of need, are now battling for appropriate school places, therapies and supports.
The Government's record is abysmal. Families are being dragged through the courts, trying to have their children's basic needs met and there is the breaking of our own laws on this. It is a national embarrassment that families and parents have been forced to travel to the European institutions in Brussels today to present a petition on behalf of their children.
On behalf of Councillor Ali Field and the parents, what is the Government's response?
Comment on this
As the Deputy will know, there are a range of responses to this. Apart from the fact that about 6,000 assessment reports were completed in 2025, which was a 45% increase on the previous year, nonetheless, current waiting lists are too high. The model and framework governing this is also wrong. We need a legislative change, which we are going to do, and we need operational change, workforce reforms, increased capacity and recruitment of the therapists, and the development of the school-based multidisciplinary teams, which are now going into the special schools in the first instance. All of those are a more effective way of deploying the therapy resources we have within the HSE and our education system.